Stop No. 7 of 10 on the 2013 ASP World Championship Tour (WCT), the Hurley Pro at Trestles brings the world’s best surfers to one of the planet’s most high-performance venues for a week of barrier-breaking surfing and dramatic competition.

“Mitch (Crews) and Wilko (Matt Wilkinson) can pull off anything at anytime and I had the curse of the 7s, but I had a fun surf,” Smith said. “I was pretty bummed because my leash plug pulled out on this little left, but luckily my board didn’t go all the way to shore. I lucked in to a couple of sets though and I had a good time. It doesn’t look like we have a ton of waves coming our way, but what we have today is really fun and contestable.”

“I’m stoked, it was a gnarly heat but I was just trying to do my own thing because Kelly (Slater) and Dane (Reynolds) were going to do what they do,” Simpson said. “I was just excited for that heat and I knew that was a heat I could win because I surf a lot more freely when maybe it’s a heat I’m not supposed to win. I just focused on myself and with all my family down here, it’s a big win. Anytime you beat Slater, whether it’s man-on-man or three-man, it’s a big win.”

While both Kelly Slater and reigning ASP World Champion Joel Parkinson (AUS), 32, would fail to advance out of Round 1, both would rebound in their Round 2 afternoon match ups.

Slater, defending Hurley Pro at Trestles champion, would take on progressive wizard Dane Reynolds in their Round 2 affair and would get the best of the Californian in a wave-starved heat.

Dane Reynolds. Photo: ASP

“That was really slow and it was too bad I had to draw Dane in Round 2,” Slater said. “Unfortunately he just didn’t get the waves and didn’t get going. I was pretty confident that I’d have to surf against him being a low seed, but it’s just unfortunate that it was a slow heat.”

Slater, current ASP World No. 1, admitted that his Round 2 Hurley Pro at Trestles victory was a crucial result towards a potential 12th ASP World Title.

“There was definitely a bit of pressure in that heat because Mick (Fanning) has good results and Joel (Parkinson) has a few bad results,” Slater said. “I also don’t have anything to throw away and Mick has all keepers. Also, Jordy (Smith) is every bit in this race so it was important to me to get out of that one.”

Adriano de Souza. Photo: ASP

Parkinson would rebound from his Round 1 loss in fantastic fashion, dominating the Lowers righthanders with polished carves to post a 16.13 heat total, advancing to Round 3 over event wildcard Ian Crane.

“This event always seems to be a bit of a momentum builder going in to the back half of the year,” Parkinson said. “The guys that go on to make finals here always seem to do well. You definitely don’t want to lose in Round 2 here so I’m happy to get a couple of good waves out there.”

Event organizers will reconvene tomorrow morning at 7:30am local time for a possible 8am start to Hurley Pro at Trestles competition. The Hurley Pro at Trestles holds a waiting period from September 15 – 21, 2013 and is webcast LIVE via www.hurley.com/hurleypro